A demonstrator takes part in a march against femicides in Mexico City, capital of Mexico, June 3, 2015. (Xinhua/Alejandro Ayala)
Fifty-five percent of the femicides last year were committed by family members or intimate partners, while 12 percent of homicides against males were perpetrated in the home.
VIENNA, Nov. 22 (Xinhua) -- Nearly 89,000 women and girls were killed in 2022 across the globe, the highest annual figure recorded in the past two decades, according to a fresh research brief released by the United Nations (UN) on Wednesday.
The research brief published by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and UN Women suggested that the increase in femicides occurred "despite a drop in the overall number of homicides."
Students and teachers participate in the "One Billion Rising" global campaign to end violence against women and children during the Valentine's Day celebration at a school in Manila, the Philippines on Feb. 14, 2023. (Xinhua/Rouelle Umali)
Fifty-five percent of the femicides last year were committed by family members or intimate partners, while 12 percent of homicides against males were perpetrated in the home.
The contrast underscores the "disturbing reality that home is far from a safe haven for women and girls," the brief said.
"The alarming number of femicides is a stark reminder that humanity is still grappling with deep-rooted inequalities and violence against women and girls," UNODC Executive Director Ghada Waly said in a statement on Wednesday.
People visit an exhibition of Palestinian artist Kholoud al-Dasooqi in Gaza City, on Aug. 11, 2020. Kholoud al-Dasooqi, a Palestinian artist from the Gaza Strip city of Khan Younis, has opened her two-day exhibition to reveal the violence against women through dozens of paintings. (Photo by Rizek Abdeljawad/Xinhua)
"Governments must invest in institutions that are more inclusive and well-equipped to end impunity, strengthen prevention, and help victims, from frontline responders to the judiciary, to end the violence before it is too late," Waly added. ■
